Why You Should Buy Edgy Right-Wing Black Metal LPs (My Career Is Over)

Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love Post-Prison Burzum...

…almost all Norwegian bands are more or less nazis [sic]. Burzum, Mayhem, Emperor, Arcturus, Enslaved, you name them.

Written by Euronymous in a letter to a fan, 1993.

I have a modest collection of NSBM LPs and CDs that has steadily been growing over a couple years. I recently ordered a few more from a US-based distributor, and it got me thinking why me and many others feel compelled to pick up these records. Considering the social consequences many people face for supporting or expressing interest in so-called “sketchy” bands, there is more to this than just enjoying the music… But of course, the first thing that came to mind when thinking about why I buy these records is I like the music. As a connoisseur of the “raw black metal” sound, Goatmoon’s Death Before Dishonor is first to come to mind when thinking about truly great examples of black metal’s characteristic corpse-sound and “necro” production. Death Before Dishonor is a great record to examine in this conversation because it was the first album by a “sketchy” band I bought despite criticism. At that point, I already owned a few Taake CDs and had caught heat from members of the local music scene for speaking so highly of Noregs Vaapen. Afterall, Hoest was the guy who painted a swastika on his chest in preparation for a show back in 2007. I understood it back then as an obvious act of provocation. Afterall, the Satanic imagery Taake employed in the mid-90’s is not as evocative as it once was. But my friends at the time could not get over how “fucked up” it was. That was the point… pulling that stunt in front of a German audience was actual transgression against social norms opposed to the pretend act tons of modern Black Metal projects are doing. There was a serious hypocrisy I detected here. Afterall, we were collectively interested in a genre launched into the public consciousness by a series of high-profile murders and crimes motivated by intense anti-social desires and uncompromising iconoclasm. Black Metal, as an artform, is supposed to have no limits. It is centered around individual expression and purity of intent. In the beginning, it was an attempt to force-create a countercultural artistic movement that would tear apart the frustrating meaninglessness of modernity. I still believe this is the cultural mission of black metal. I cannot help but resonate with Varg when asked about NSBM in a 2010 interview…

            “The NSBM guys on the other hand are more Black Metal than anyone else I can think of. Disagree with what they have to say if you like, but admire them too. They walk against the current. Alone in a hostile world.” (Link)

The Satanism of 80’s and 90’s Black Metal had its place and purpose. The artists of that era were moved to embrace that form of counterculture, but sensibilities have changed over the decades. These days, various forms of “Satanism” and satanic imagery are found across popular culture. Hoest, being an artist in-touch with the true spirit of the genre knew this back in ’07 and sought to recapture the countercultural edge the music had at its founding. Obviously, he evoked the symbolism of national-socialism because it represents the final-frontier of counterculture and a declaration of total war against modern sensibilities. I can respect when artists like Blackgoat create albums like Death Before Dishonor. It is an album that bleeds purity of intent and authenticity in a world where those things are difficult to find, especially among musicians. Death Before Dishonor is a tone poem that grants the listener room to feel hatred and rage in an uncompromising and cathartic way. The juxtaposition of extremes in tracks like “Pure Blood” marks the bleeding edge of transgressive Black Metal art. Whether one like the lyrical/thematic contents of the song is irrelevant. The truth is, this style of Black Metal attacks mainstream sensibilities in the same way Venom’s music did in the 80’s. This is the front line of counterculture, and the fact the politically-correct order opposes this style of self-expression is indicative of the trajectory true counterculture in the West. NSBM is authentic and dangerous, and I respect the artists that exchange potential success and careerism for uncompromised extremity and purity of intent. As governments and media outlets spread fear of political extremists and promote rigid ideological conformity, the themes of NSBM feel particularly timely. People have forgotten that “counterculture” is supposed to be offensive, opposed to retreading the footsteps of twenty-year-old musical edge. This is why punk rock died. With the death of GG Allin and the total suppression of RAC, punk became a way to safely contain youth behavior and promote pro-government attitudes with a rebellious package. In order to find truly dangerous innovative music, one has to go deeper. Explicitly right-wing, Nationalist, and (overtly) National Socialist artists are currently making some of the most avant-garde and interesting art in Black Metal. Even if the artists themselves are not overly political or ideological, the utilization of National Socialist of imagery by artists for purely transgressive reasons is as legitimate as any other method of boundary-crossing. People are too fragile, sensitive, and far too willing to self-censor when delving into these matters. I completely understand not wanting to listen and support such a scene, but the fact remains if the imagery offends it is working as intended.

Our political moment has made NSBM so radioactive that mainstream music culture cannot go anywhere near it. Hendrik Möbus explained in an interview with Urkult that the national socialist aesthetic of Absurd had the additional consequence of pushing the band into the underground forever. Absurd has been scraped from music streaming platforms and distributors dedicated to political correctness refuse to sell their music. Getting Absurd records is not difficult, but the additional layer of attention required to obtain a decent pressing of Facta Loquuntur gives the record a level of exclusivity that most black metal media lacks. I love Mayhem’s De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, but I could have a copy in any format delivered to my door more-or-less on demand. The relative rarity of NSBM releases, in addition to growing demand and limited distribution options makes buying these records representative of more than just naked consumerism. It is supporting a scene of cutting-edge artists that offer real, substantive opposition to the mainstream. Obtaining a Peste Noire LP is now an exclusive and rebellious act. While Famine’s market strategy is somewhat to blame, the censorious policies of websites like Discogs makes reselling the records much more difficult. Purchasing some of the more overt and obscure NSBM LPs I currently own, I had to dig for links to distro and label websites online or search out individual contacts. Once, I had to manually translate (Ukrainian) and fill out an order form via email then wait for a payment request that would arrive “in several hours.” Even for those that do not collect, finding spaces online where one can discuss bands such as Blood Libel or Peste Noire has become somewhat exclusive. It may sound mundane, but this is more like the experiences my friends had trading for Black Metal tapes and CDs in the late 80’s and 90’s. It is fun and interesting seeking this stuff out. It’s fun showing these records to friends and seeing their reactions. They always ask, “where did you get this?” One cannot just Google these bands and immediately buy the records. These albums are expressions of total revolt against the status quo. Why should they be easy to get?  

On Twitter, I came across a post by a mutual that illustrated my thoughts perfectly. The vocal minority that dominates the discussion around NSBM online and in the music media are completely deranged. There is no artistic curiosity, no desire to engage in honest intellectual discussion… and the metrics by which bands are labeled “far right” surpass any reasonable standard. Look no further than this series of screenshots for an illustration of my point:

(sourced from @trvechoo Link)

The dedication here is staggering. The commitment to ideological “purity” and political correctness runs so deep, this social media user allows decentralized masses of online progressives to dictate what music he can and cannot listen to. All of these criteria are incredibly broad and come down to interpretation. The use of the term “sus” (suspicious) is telling, since the actions and words of musicians typically mean nothing. Usually, a band gets labeled “sketch” when they fail to signal support for progressive causes, they sign to a label that encourages free expression, or they have certain friends that reject political correctness. Bands that have absolutely nothing to do with right-wing ideology are lumped into this category by people that hate Black Metal due to its status as a right-wing music genre. Despite this, many are still attempting a political takeover of the genre. Black Metal is, in its nature, a reactionary cultural phenomenon. I do believe Black Metal has a right-wing orientation as a result, but the artform is much bigger than this false left-vs-right dichotomy pushed by Leftists. I would be hesitant to give these social media posts any mention if I did not feel like they were representative of the majority opinion in music media. In Daniel Lake’s book, USBM: A Revolution Of Identity In American Black Metal, the first chapter serves as an apology for the more dangerous aspects of the artform. Additionally, it serves as an explanation of how Lake can document many of these “problematic” bands without being an untouchable reactionary.

“Before we can engage in an honest exploration of black metal’s history in America, we must first be fully aware of the genre’s nauseating and not incidental association with misogynist, racist and homophobic tendencies. Black metal is not misogynist, racist or homophobic music, but it can be ideologically driven music, and that very fact yokes us with a responsibility to investigate those principles. Most of the artists covered in these pages stand staunchly in support of universal human rights and advancing the political power of historically marginalized people, and some of the voices in this book are activists in their own right. Nonetheless, if we are to accept liberally informed views as representative of a greater societal good, we must frankly confront less generous approaches. Black metal has long stood for what is evil and misanthropic in the hearts of its purveyors, and it is not so easy to brush those ugly lodestones aside.” (Link)

This article initially included a disclaimer… I deleted it upon reading this…

Despite this exhaustive disclaimer, it seems (based off reviews online) that progressives were still quite upset with Lake. Of course, they felt like he did condemn the “shitty racist bands” he chose to interview, at least not strongly enough. While I cannot worm my way into Lake’s mind, I could see how he felt forced to write such a disclaimer by a hostile progressive publisher. Obviously, he could also be a true believer in the project of creating a politically-correct Black Metal scene… After running through additional excerpts of Lake’s book online, it is difficult for me to decide what motivates him. However, the fact remains. Nachtmystium had shows canceled because of vague, distant associations with “nazi” record labels. Not because Blake Judd was a heroin addict routinely stealing money from close friends and family while running merch scams and promoting fake releases. As we learned in the above social media post, associations and heresy are enough to get artists removed from venues, tour rosters, labels, and streaming websites. In the music media, there is a disproportionate emphasis on going after artists that hold right-wing beliefs or maintain friendships with right-wing artists. All manner of degenerate, questionable, and bizarre behavior are tolerated and arguably encouraged by the same people that threaten venues over Taake being allowed to play there.

My final point, as a result, is this. Online activists and journalists are trying to make music I like totally inaccessible. If it were up to them, I would not be permitted to listen to a significant number of black metal bands I love and strongly connect with. In order to ensure my ability to listen to a lot of these bands, I buy physical copies of their albums. Especially as these records get older, original copies get harder to find, and the Internet moves towards more centralized infrastructure. Owning physical copies of these records will only become more important going forward. I will never apologize for music I enjoy. This article should not be taken as an attempt to substantiate or justify my interest in extreme music to anyone, especially not the people that would throw me under the bus for owning an Eternal Strife LP. I wrote it to outline my perspective regarding the role of extremely transgressive Black Metal within the scene, in addition to an intellectual exercise.

Black Metal is something you must accept all or none of, and NSBM is no exception. Again, I understand if individuals prefer to steer clear from these hateful corners of the genre. If you choose to avoid the rabbit hole of NSBM, do us a favor and just leave us alone. There can be no discussion of what inspirations artists elect to incorporate into their music and performance… Not in Black Metal. Most normies look at Black Metal as a genre exclusively for Nazis already. There are plenty of bands, for moral reasons, I personally do not like. You will never hear me talk about it, or condemn anyone for music they choose to listen to. Except of course… if those bands appear on the RABM Reddit page…

Hail The fuckin’ Underground boys